Operation: Immunity(UNDER RECONSTRUCTION)
by Broncozfan623
Summary: It's been twenty years since the CBI pandemic devastated the United States. Ever since, the military and a group called the Fireflies, have fought for control of the country. However, in the abandoned streets outside of the quarantine zones, a third faction fights for control. They are said to be a force so fierce, they're only described as supernatural. They call them: Ghosts.
1. Rememberance

**Hello, and welcome to my first story. I have decided to go back and completely redo the entire story, because I was disappointed with my writing. For a list of what I am changing, here is a list.****  
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**1-Changing the story to First Person instead of Third.**

**2-Improving Brad and Devon's introductions.**

**3-Making all the chapters longer. EXTREMELY LONGER.**

**4-Including more characters from the Call of Duty franchise. Especially ones from the Black Ops series. I will not be including any Advanced Warfare characters, so please don't ask.**

**5-Basically all grammar mistakes.**

**6-Beginning is actually after the events of the first couple of weeks, like what happened to Mason in Black Ops 1. The events haven't changed, but the chapters that I have already written and the ones after that will be retold by Brad.**

**7-Adding a prologue**

**You're probably asking: Why change the entire thing entirely. Well, I just feel like this new version of the story will be better and look more like how I envisioned it.**

**Also, one more thing. I'm going to change each chapter one at a time. So basically, I will put up the updated chapter one, then two, three, and four. Then I will begin work on chapter five.**

**That's basically it, so enjoy to all viewers, new or old. Not, let's begin the new and improved Operation: Immunity.**

**(Recommend listening to _"Day of the Dead"_ by Hollywood Undead while reading.)**

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><p><em><strong>Prologue<strong>_

We all come into this world with our eyes closed.

And most of us choose to live our whole lives that way.

We blindly follow anyone who will lead us...giving ourselves over to anything that provides us with a sense pf purpose.

For me, it was the Ghosts.

My name is Brad Johnston, and 4 months ago, I enlisted into Task Force Stalker. Or, as you probably know them as, the Ghosts.

We were formed twenty years ago, when the Federal Disaster Response Agency took control of the entire United States armed forces, just as the Cordyceps Brain Infection devastated our nation. When FEDRA took control, all the Special Forces, such as the SEALS, the Rangers, and Delta Force, broke away from the military.

They formed a force of their own, setting up their own quarantine zones, far from the military's control.

These men and women became Task Force Stalker.

Within months, they had at least one zone in every state, and their reputation spread like wildfire. Pretty soon, they were feared across the country, and for a good reason. The Ghosts had the best weaponry, the best training, and the larger numbers. It wasn't really surprising that most people feared us.

But not the Fireflies, those bastards were fucking fearless.

We have been fighting since the outbreak started, the same thing being with FEDRA. The Fireflies had the same goal as us, which was to find a cure for the infection. Not only that, they called for a return of the three-branch government system.

Over the years, they spread havoc across the country, killing thousands of more people. They led riots, bombed trucks in the streets. They were the exact opposite of what they say they are.

And two decades, or twenty years, things didn't change one fucking bit.

And that's where I came in.

I was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, inside the military quarantine zone. My parents were in charge of all forces in the quarantine zone. One day, they got orders to leave the zone, something about needing reinforcements in another city.

They all packed up and left, leaving all the remaining civilians to fend for themselves.

Including me. My parents left me behind in that city, which is now controlled by hunters.

But, after that I headed to Boston, where I enlisted into the Ghosts. I had been there for two months when I was captured by the Fireflies, just outside of Boston.

I thought that it was over, when I got captured. That that was how I die in this horrible excuse for a country.

But I was wrong.

That was only the beginning.

* * *

><p>I woke up out of being knocked out. When I opened my eyes, there were nothing but bright lights that blinded me for a couple more seconds. My mind was racing with tons of questions.<p>

Where was I? Where did the Fireflies go? Was I still in New York, where the Fireflies had taken me? Also, why was I strapped down into a chair with screens surrounding me?

But most importantly, why were there numbers flashing through my head?

_40, 75, 0, 0, 111, 88, 33. _What did they mean?

Before I could go through all my thoughts, I looked up to see four or five black silhouettes in a room, all looking down at me. One of them spoke up.

"Wake up, WAKE UP!" It had said.

I continued to look around the room,"Where am I-? Where are the Fireflies?"

The voice responded without answering my question, "You will answer our questions. Do you understand?"

I stared at them and yelled,"Who the hell are you?"

This time, they answered my question when they responded,"That's not important. What's important is who you are. What's your name?"

"Fuck you."

"Where were you born?"

"Kiss my ass!"

As soon as I said that, shocks off electricity were running all through my body. I screamed out in response. As soon as my so-called "rescuers" had woken me up, they just decided to fry me too death? How generous.

The voice came out again,"Your name is Brad Johnston. You were born in Charlotte, North Carolina. You are currently enlisted as a soldier for Task Force: STALKER in Boston. Is that correct?"

When I didn't respond, they shocked me again, only earning more screams in response. The voice came through again, only this time with anger,"Is that correct?!"

I gritted my teeth in pain. What these assholes want from me? It's not like I got anyone killed or captured.

Gritting my teeth even more, I finally I responded,"Yes."

They waited before asking me another question,"Where is the girl?"

I responded quickly,"I don't know what you're talking about."

"The girl, Brad. Ellie Williams was kidnapped from Boston two days after you went M.I.A. They told you her location when you were interrogated. You're the only person we have in finding her. Now, where are they holding her?"

"I don't know anything about her location."

At the time, it was true. My memory was still in a blur from what had happened. All I could remember was being on a mission took take out some Firefly assets. The rest of my squad was-

Another thought came into my mind.

Where were Martinez, and Baker, and Devon? Did they make it out of the area? When I was knocked unconscious, we were pinned down and surrounded. I just hoped that they made it out alive.

The voice finally came through,"What about Marlene? Do you remember her? Give us what we want and we'll guarantee your safety."

They shocked me one last time, but only for a second, so I didn't scream as loud.

"Let's start at the beginning. London, The United Kingdom. Special Forces training base. We know you were there."

I didn't say anything for a couple of seconds. London. Yes, I remembered that, but how did they know I was in London? As far as I was told, nobody in the country had relations outside of the United States. After the outbreak, all close allies had put embargoes on all trading relations with the US, fearing that infected could get to their homes.

But that didn't matter. Whatever these guys wanted, I would have to give it to them, if I wanted to survive.

So I relaxed, and began to recollect everything that had happened the last few weeks.

* * *

><p><em><strong>2 Months<strong>** Earlier**_

It was just like any other night really. Peaceful, quiet, all you could here were the tree's blowing in the wind.

That night it was just me and Devon. My best friend and most trusted man. He could always keep a secret for you. When he heard I was from the States, he wouldn't stop pestering me with questions. One time he thought that I was Infected from a scar that I had on my shoulder. Then I had to explain about if you wanted to truly be Infected, you had to be bitten. So he understood after that.

He was an African American kid. Born and raised from down in Dover. He was 18, so like me he was born after the outbreak destroyed my home. He was tall and agile, you barely lucky if you could beat him in a footrace. But, he wasn't a great shot. More than once the trainers there had to stop him from spraying bullets down the range.

Despite all that though, he was a cool guy.

That night we had decided to get some more training in. The next morning would be our final test before we were being shipped off to our units. Meaning I would have to be sent back to Boston. I admit, I was going to miss him, but it was for the best.

We had ran, went to range(having almost been caught by some soldiers), and finished it off with racing back to our dorm. He beat me, of course. I never was a faster runner than he was.

"Don't you ever get tired from running to fast?" I asked him as we caught our breath outside.

He laughed and shook his head,"Naw. Just motivates me to run faster. I would be concerned if I were you. What if you're not fast enough and you get caught by Infected?"

"Shut up." Was all I said, and he laughed.

After a couple of minutes of sitting there, I stood up, waving him along behind me."C'mon. We need to get some sleep. Tomorrow is the big day."

"Yeah. You sure you really want to go back to the States?" he asked after he stood and we walked inside.

"I have to. You know that."

"Yeah, but why not just stay here? No Infected, no Fireflies, no more fighting. You could live a normal life here."

I shook my head, Devon never understood about what my parents did to me.

Basically, when I was sixteen, my parents were main leaders in the Charlotte QZ. Something happened outside of the city, and all the soldiers got pulled out. They abandoned the QZ, leaving all the civilians to fend for myself.

Including me.

Yeah, I said it. Those bastards just packed up and left me to fight for my life. That was when I left Charlotte for good and headed for Boston, to join the Ghosts.

Yet, Devon still never understood that even after six weeks of telling him the same thing over and over.

By the time we spoke again, we were inside our dorm, I was flopped down on my bed, while Devon climbed up into his.

"Devon. You know that I can't stay here."

"Yeah, but-" he paused, like he was trying to think of something to say. Eventually, he just sighed and didn't say anything.

I stared at the top of the bunk for a few minutes. My mind was racing. What if he was right?

I mean, what if I could stay there? I could get a chance to live a normal life in London. I could find a place to live in the city, get a job, hopefully live a happy life.

But, what about those people who are suffering back in the States? I couldn't just let them sit there and suffer while I was living the good life.

Eventually I got so lost in my thoughts that I dozed off, leaving the room filled with silence.

* * *

><p>"Alright, everyone gather 'round," the instructor, John MacTavish, or "Soap", as that was they called him back in his war years, had called when everyone was in the room and accounted for. Devon and I had been one of the first few people to get there, so we had to wait for the others to arrive.<p>

Everyone gathered around Soap,"Today, you all are hear to run the test to see if you will be an operative for Task Force 141. You will each run the Pit once. If you score less than thirty-five seconds, you will run it again. If you fail the second time, you will be put in the British Royal Marines, excluding Brad," I was relieved when I heard him say that,"One more thing. Captain Price will be watching you all run the Pit. I heard he's looking for a few young soldiers like you."

I turned and looked at Devon, and had to hold back a laugh. He looked like he had just been slapped in the face. I knew that Captain John Price was a legend here in the UK, so knowing that he might have a chance to fight alongside him must have caught him off guard.

I tapped him with my elbow,"You alright, man? You look like you've seen a _Ghost_." I put emphasis on the last word, knowing that I would be one within the hour.

He finally responded after a minute,"You heard what he said, right?"

I snorted,"Of course. If you don't fuck this up, you get to fight with Captain Price. I heard every word."

"And you don't find that awesome?"

"Why should I? It's not like it affects me any."

Devon shook his head, then turned to face me, looking like he was about to say something. But before he could, Soap yelled out my name, telling me to come there.

I jogged over to him,"Yes sir?" I had said when I arrived. He turned to me, his face showing a whole bunch of scars.

"Listen to me son. This is huge for you. You complete this, you become a Ghost than go back to the States. You have to be prepared."

"I am, sir. I've been waiting for this day for months."

He smiled,"Good, because you're running the Pit first," he opened up a chest, showing off a bunch of weapons,"Choose any weapon you want then head to the starting line. When the first target pops up the clock starts ticking."

I nodded, going and grabbing one of the guns from the chest. I had no idea what it was, but I didn't care. I would use whatever felt comfortable for me.

I walked over to the starting line, then saw the first three targets pop up. I shot them almost immediately, only firing three shots, each one meeting it's target. I ran forward, three more targets popped up, one painted as a civilian. I shot the other two, leaving the one of the civilian be.

When I moved forward, eight more targets popped up, six soldiers and two civilians. I quickly shot the six soldiers, knowing I was still being timed. I heard Soap yell out,"Area cleared! Move into the building!" so I did. More targets popped up, so I shot the soldiers, just barely missing one of the civilians.

"Up the stairs!" I heard Soap yell. I quickly ran up the stairs, only for a target to pop up right in my face.

"Melee with your knife!" Soap yelled again. I quickly lowered my gun, grabbed my knife with my left hand, and stabbed the target right in the chest. It retracted back, allowing me to move on. After that, I shot the rest of the targets on the course, not hitting a single civilian. I sprinted to the exit, hearing most of the guys cheering as I crossed the line.

When I was back at the entrance, I expected for the first person to great me would either be Devon or Soap coming to congratulate me on how well I had done. But what I got was the least of my expectations, and when I arrived, Captain John Price was standing their with Soap.

I look at him with a look of confusion and he laughed. I looked at Soap questioningly, but he just smiled.

Finally, Price spoke up,"You did great out there, kid. It's sad to see what a great soldier like you had gone through," he sighed,"Come with me," he said after that, and walked away. I handed my gun to Soap and walked after Price, ignoring all the voices that called to me as I walked off.

Just as I was walking behind Price, I heard Soap yelling from the Pit, telling someone to stop firing from the hip and aim down his sight. I smiled, knowing that it must have been Devon running the Pit after me.

Price and I walked for another ten minutes or so. When we reached where we were apparently heading, a small bunker far from all the dorms and training grounds, he led me inside.

The bunker was small, not much stuff was in the room. Just a table with papers on it. I recognized one photo that stood out in the pile.

It was an old photo, the buildings crumbling behind a lone soldier stood in the photo, a rifle in his hands. I recognized the city from the way the skyline looked like.

It was Charlotte.

And the person in the photo was me.

How did they get this? I hadn't seen this photo in weeks. I thought I had lost it in Boston a while back. I didn't like to remember my family that much, considering what they had done to me. But hey, I needed something to remember them for.

I looked up at Price,"How did you get this?" I asked him, his back turned away from me.

Price turned to look at me,"Devon gave it to me. Told me about how you were abandoned by your family a while back. I asked him to find something so I could find out more about that," he pointed to a chair that sat by the wall,"Sit down. I want you to tell me about this."

I looked at him with a confused look,"Why do you care? I'm supposed to be shipped off back t-"

"Just sit down. All I want is for you to tell me what happened. After that, you can leave."

And with that, I complied. I sat across the table from him. He stared at me impatiently, waiting for me to begin.

I sighed,"Well, it all started back in Charlotte, about a year ago."

* * *

><p><em><strong>1 Year Earlier...<strong>_

_Charlotte Quarantine Zone, North Carolina_

"Goddammit!" he yelled, slamming his fist on the table."What the fuck do we do now?!"

"Calm down Zak, we need to figure this out."

Zak turned to her, the anger in his eyes clear,"What else is there to figure out? It's pretty clear, they want us to leave the city by next week. We can't just leave these people here, Amy." He took a deep breath after that, trying to calm himself down.

Amy looked at him, then sighed,"Let's just wait until Mom and Dad get back, then we-" She couldn't finish her sentence before the front door burst open, and their parents walked in. Amy looked at them, muttering a "Hello" when they walked in.

Their mom looked at them,"You guys are back early," she looked around, unable to find her younger son,"Where's Brad?"

"He's sleeping upstairs," Zak said, his eyes still downward looking at the report they had gotten, telling them they had to leave Charlotte.

Their mom nodded, climbing the stairs to go check on him.

Their dad finally spoke,"Good thing he's sleeping. He can't here about this," Zak and Amy looked at him with a confused look.

"Why not?" They said in unison. Their dad, Charles, sighed and looked up at him.

"You're not going to like this. Neither of you."

Zak and Amy exchanged looks, the nervousness clearly obvious in both of them.

"Brad won't be coming with us out of the city."

Zak's jaw dropped, while Amy stared at him in shock, tears were starting to form in her eyes almost immediately.

"The generals in Atlanta say they won't have room for us and him. He can't come with us."

They all stood in silence for a few minutes, nobody wanting to speak.

It was Zak who broke the silence,"So that's it? We're just...leaving him here?"

"You know I can't..."

"No Charles! This isn't right. Brad is only sixteen, we can't just leave him."

"I don't have a goddamn choice!" Charles snapped, silencing Zak again. He sighed again,"Look. I don't want to do this either. But I don't have a choice. Brad is tough, he can make it out of the city. Maybe head to Atlanta after that."

Amy shook her head,"He won't go to Atlanta, you know he hates the South."

"Then where the fuck is he gonna go?" Zak snapped.

Amy wiped her eyes, and then shrugged.

Now, they hadn't known about Brad's dreams of being a Ghost. He had kept it to himself while they had trained him to be a soldier and to stay in the quarantine zones. But, Brad had planned once he turned seventeen that he would leave Charlotte and find the Ghosts, regardless if they were across the country.

Their mother returned, walking into the dining room where everyone else was. She looked at Charles and spoke,"I'm guessing you told them." When Charles nodded, she turned to Zak and Amy,"You have to understand why we're doing this. The forces in Atlanta requested reinforcements from here in Charlotte. They said they would need all of us to come, due to their small numbers,but they don't have enough space for all of the soldiers plus their families. They said Brad would have to stay behind, because he isn't a soldier."

Zak butted in,"But he's sixteen. He can be-"

"I know, but they won't have room for us whether he is or not."

Zak opened his mouth to speak again, but couldn't think of anything to say. He eventually just shook his head.

Dawn spoke again,"We're leaving in three hours. If you want to say your goodbyes, now is the time."

Zak and Amy nodded, then they both turned to go see Brad. As he started walking towards the stairs, Charles stopped him. He reached for his magnum, placing it in Zak's hand."Give this to him," he said,"He's going to need it."

Zak nodded, then turned and walked upstairs to Brad's room. When he arrived, Brad was still sound asleep, Amy crouched by his side. Zak could see her holding an old photo in her hands, a picture she had taken with Brad outside of the zone.

He looked at Amy, seeing that she was crying. He walked up to her, placing his hand on her shoulder,muttering that they he was sorry and that they had to get ready to leave. Amy nodded, placing the photo on the dresser. Zak placed the magnum on top of the photo and started for the door. Before he exited, he turned and took one last look at his brother. He knew that would be the last time he would ever see his brother again. He didn't know that he was crying when Amy placed her hand on his shoulder, guiding him out of the room.

That night, they left Charlotte, leaving the young sixteen year old to fend for himself. They thought they would be the last time they would ever see Brad again.

They were wrong. But it would be a long time.

And Brad would not take their reunion lightly.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Back in London<em>**

"So then what happened?" Price asked. He had been asking me constant questions about my parents for about an hour know. I didn't complain though, I had kept what my parents did a secret to everyone(except Devon, he was basically the only one I trusted), so it felt nice to get the weight off my shoulders.

"Well, after they left, I basically just grabbed what I could and left Charlotte," I said.

Price considered this for a moment,"I'm guessing you headed to Boston after that." I nodded.

"Yeah, it was hell getting their. I lost so many people getting their." That made Price raise an eyebrow,"You weren't alone?" he asked. I nodded again,"For a little while, just some people I met in Richmond. They heard I was heading to Boston, so they asked if they could come along."

"What happened to them?" Price asked.

Goddammit, I thought, Why did I bring that up?

I looked down,"They got infected, same thing that happened to a lot of people."

Price frowned,"I'm sorry, son." I just shook his head. Price spoke again,"Well, that's all I wanted to know. You should get back and pack your bags. You're heading back to Boston tomorrow."

I nodded, and headed for the door. I didn't bother talking to Devon when I saw him again. I wasn't in the mood.

As I was grabbing my stuff that I had brought to London, I noticed a piece of paper lying in the bottom of my bag. I grabbed it and pulled it out. It was a letter.

It was the letter my sister had left me, before they left.

I opened it up and read it to myself.

**Brad,**

**I'm writing this to say goodbye.**

**Unfortunately, Mom and Dad are having us leave Charlotte, something about reinforcing the forces in Atlanta.**

**They said we have to leave you here. Zak and I protested as much as we could, be we had no choice.**

**I'm so sorry, Brad. We did all we could.**

**Before I go, I want you to know that we love you.**

**We will never forget about you.**

**If you read this, bring it to wherever you go, just so you can remember us.**

**I have to go know.**

**I love you. **

**-Amy**

I felt tears sting my eyes, I had forgotten about this. My sister was the only one who had left me something to remember them(excluding my father). She was the only one who had cared about me enough to give me something.

That was enough to make me cry. She was the only one who actually cared about me enough. The only one who tried to protect me.

And that was what upset me the most.

I stopped crying, eventually, and grabbed the rest of my stuff and flopped down on my bed. I don't remember falling asleep, but I eventually dozed off.

Before I had fallen asleep, I assured myself that one thing. I would find my sister, bring her to the Ghosts, bring her to safety. She could live there and never have to fight anymore.

Because she defended me, and I had to return the favor.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Present Day<strong>_

"Then the next day, I was on a boat back to the U.S."

The people up in the window had asked me a bunch of questions while I told them about my time in London, most of them regarding my talk with Price. They didn't shock me through the chair, thankfully.

The man that was talking the whole time spoke once again,"Did you talk to anyone before you left?"

I shook my head,"No. I never got to say goodbye."

It was true, I had woken up bright and early on the day I left. Devon was asleep when I grabbed my pack and headed to the people that were taking me to where the ship that was heading to the US. Not even Soap or Price came to say goodbye.

"Well then," the man said,"Let's move on to after that. When you returned to Boston."

I inaudibly groaned. They wanted to know _everything_ since I got back from London. Damn.

This was going to take a while.

* * *

><p><strong>So what do you guys think. Do you like the new version better than the old? If so, please tell me. I would really appreciate any feedback, even if you don't have an account.<strong>

**That's all for this one, so I'll see you when Chapter Two is done being remade. Until then, have a wonderful day!**

**-Broncozfan623**


	2. Welcome to the Ghosts

**Hello! I am back with Chapter 2. I forgot to clarify some stuff last chapter, so let me do that real fast**

**I don't own Call of Duty or The Last of Us, all those rights go out to Activision and Naughty Dog. I own nothing(except my own created characters and storyline).**

**This fanfic will be putting some violent and disturbing scenes, so if you think they are to gruesome, please let me know.**

**The U.S was the only country to be affected by the CBI pandemic, even though that is highly unlikely. Though, the infection does show up in small parts of Canada and Mexico**

**This fanfic does not ship Ellie/Riley unfortunately. I love these two, but sadly, it will not be included.**

**I don't have anything left to say, so lets just continue own with the fic.**

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><p><p>

Chapter 2:Welcome to the Ghosts

The wind blew across their clothes as they stood on the docks, the boat that was taking Brad back to the U.S sitting calmly against the water.

Tons of people came to watch Brad leave. Devin was there of course, along with Captain Price, Brad's main officers, Gaz and Soap, plus about a dozen soldiers who were friends of his during training.

After a few minutes of silence, Price finally stepped forward,he cleared his throat,"We are all here to wish one of our fellow comrades a safe journey. Brad Johnston, congratulations on completing training for Task Force Stalker."He saluted Brad, and Brad followed up the suite and saluted back.

After that, Brad turned to Devin, he couldn't leave without saying goodbye to his best friend.

"So," he said, "I guess this is goodbye."

Devin smiled and shook his head,"Naw. More like see ya later."

Now it was Brad's turn to shake his head,"Whatever man."

He then said goodbye to everyone, and started towards the boat, only to be stopped by Price."Is something up?"

Price shook his head,"No son, just...Remember this,"he bent down lower so his face was level with Brad's,"If you ever need anything. Just give me a call. I don't think your commanders would mind."

Brad smiled at him,"I will." He waved at everyone else, then boarded the boat. The boat set off a minute later, and Brad was on his way back to the U.S.

_5 Weeks Later_

Brad was woken from his sleep by the front of the boat hitting something. There were no windows under deck(pfft, obviously), so Brad didn't know where they were.

He walked onto the deck, and looked out to see the skyline of a city towards the front of the boat. Brad had seen it before, the skyline looked very familiar.

Then it hit him.

That was Boston, he made back to the U.S.

Brad gazed upon the skyline, taking in the scenery. The view was nothing like back in Charlotte, it was actually quite beautiful.

At long last, after they had docked, Brad went to gather his belongings. He came back up on deck, his backpack containing all his valuables. He had an old belt with a holster on the right side, where Brad slid his father's old 44 Magnum inside. His father had given it to him when he turned fifteen. He was eighteen now, he looked at it, and thought to himself how fast time flies.

He slid the gun back in to the holster, and jumped onto the dock. He couldn't fathom how different it felt to back on U.S soil. Finally, he was home.

He walked off of the dock, only to be stopped when he saw three men standing together. They didn't notice him at first, but eventually they saw him standing there, staring at them.

They walked towards him and Brad felt a surge of fear. Were they going to attack him, capture him, kill him? He almost pulled his gun on them completely out of anxiety.

When the three reached him, the older one spoke,"Are you Brad Johnston?" was all he had said. Brad didn't know what to say, so he just nodded.

The older man smiled and reached a hand out,"It's nice to meet you, I'm Merrick," he nodded to the man on his left,"That one's Hesh," then the other,"The other is Logan. We're your commanding officers. It's great to meet you. Elias told us about you."

Brad stared at them, Elias was the one who had sent him to London in the first place. How did they know him? He pushed the thought aside and shook Merrick's hand."It's nice to meet ya. But, how do you know Elias?"

The three men laughed,"Kid, you got some catching up to do. C'mon, follow us."had said the one the Merrick said was named Logan, and they all walked off, Brad right on their heels.

They walked for about twenty minutes when they finally reached their destination. A gate opened up and they all walked inside, heading into a building which Brad remembered was the main command center.

They entered another room that was full of men, all of them looking at monitors, one man in particular looked strangely familiar. Brad seemed to know him from somewhere.

Merrick spoke up then,"Hey Elias, I got someone you might want to see."

Elias turned around and looked at Brad and smiled,"Ah, look who's here. If it isn't our newest recruit. About time you showed up." He placed one hand on Brad's shoulder and brought him over to a table. One lone item sat on it.

Brad stared at the item like it was an artifact. It was a mask, fully blacked with a ghost face around the eye sockets and down the mask, making a funky shape.

Elias picked it up and handed it to Brad,"This is yours, use it only in combat. Other than that keep it off," he smiled one more time,"Oh, one more thing," He turned Brad so he was facing him,"Welcome to the Ghosts."


	3. First Day on the Job

**Hi again. I am back again with Chapter 3. Before we start, I just wanted to say thanks to the people who gave me my first two follows and favs(XtremeTrolls and Lycan-262). It means a lot to me.**

**I'm all out of stuff to say, so let's just continue.**

* * *

><p>Chapter 3: First Day on the Job<p>

He stood there, his head and shoulders drenched in sweat. His arm was extended outward, his magnum in his hand, smoke rose from the barrel.

Before him sat a man in a chair, he was slumped backward, a large bullet hole stood out on his temple. Brad recognized him from the way he looked.

It was his father, and he had killed him.

Just what he wanted to do since the day he and the rest of his family abandoned him in Charlotte.

Brad felt tears stings his eyes,_'Don't cry',_he thought,'_this is what you wanted.'_

Brad holstered his magnum and fell to his knees. Before he knew he was shaking with silent sobs that he couldn't hold back. He had lost everything. His family, his home, Brad didn't have anyone to care for or anywhere to go to.

Little did he know that that will all change in the course of the next couple of days.

* * *

><p>Brad jolted upward from his bed, his faced was drenched with what he confused to be sweat but were actually tears. He heard the rain hitting his window in his room, the Boston skyline looking just as sad and depressing as it ever was when he looked at.<p>

Brad shook his head,"Just another damn dream." he groaned. The dreams happened night after night, they were always about him killing his father. But every night, they got more detailed and more confusing. Brad couldn't wrap his mind around why they kept happening, but he wanted it to stop. He didn't want to think about his parents, his brother and sister, Devin and all his friends in London. He just wanted it all to end.

Of course, he doesn't mean by death. He just wanted to keep his mind focused. His first briefing as a Ghost was the next morning, and he wanted to keep his mind focused so he didn't act like a complete fool in front of his commanding officers.

Brad just sighed and climbed back into his bed. His first mission, he couldn't mess this up. This was his one chance to prove himself among all the others. Out of all the people at the Ghosts quarantine zone, there were about 100 soldiers and 150 civilians, most of the soldiers being in their 20s and 30s, excluding Elias and the other men that Brad met when he returned from London, their ages he didn't know. Brad was only 17, making him the youngest of all the soldiers in the entire zone, maybe even the entire city.

That didn't matter though, what mattered at the time was that Brad go back to sleep, which was all he could ask for.

He eventually dozed off about ten minutes later. He woke to the sound of people talking outside in the hall. He inaudibly groaned, and got out of bed, dressing quickly into his U.S Army shirt and jeans his brother had given him before they left. When he was done, he waited until the sounds of people out in the halls had receded before exiting.

He walked outside of the building where they housed soldiers and their families. The ground was still wet from the rain the night before, but Brad didn't mind. There were people everywhere, some heading to the vehicle depot, where they stored Humvee's and other military style vehicles. Others headed to the armory, where they stored weapons and gear. The Ghosts were well equipped, having the largest arsenal of weapons, vehicles, and technology in the country. They even had four or five attack helicopters ready, but they were for emergency use only.

Most people were heading were heading to the mess hall for breakfast. Brad debated if he should eat first before he went to the command center, but decided that his briefing was more important. He walked toward the building he had been led to when he arrived back from London 2 weeks earlier.

He walked into the room Merrick and his two other men had brought hum to when he first arrived. Surprisingly, the room was empty, there were usually at least a dozen or so people in there when Brad was there. Just as he was about to call to see if anyone was there, Elias and Merrick walked in. They were talking about something, but with low voices so Brad couldn't hear.

It was a good ten seconds before they finally noticed him, looking at him in surprise."Aren't you here a bit early?" Elias asked.

Brad shrugged,"You didn't say when to come, so I showed up after I woke up. What were you guys talking about?", he asked.

"I'm afraid that doesn't concern you," Merrick said,"But, I'm glad your here, let's get your briefing over with."

He pulled out a file and placed it on a table in front off him. Brad took it and opened it. The papers inside showed pictures of two girls, both he did not recognize. They both looked like they were 15 or 16 years old. Brad looked up at Merrick and Elias."What is all this?" was all he said.

"Identification papers," said Elias,"These two have close relations to the Fireflies, though they are both in the military school," he paused,"or at least one of them is, the older one's gone missing. Our informant within the Fireflies says that these are important, so we're listing them as HVI(High Valued Individual)."

"They don't look so important to me. What makes them so special?"

"Well, we're not sure. What we do know is that we need to bring them here and get what information we can from them. That's what were sending you to find out."

Brad nodded,"Okay. You got names for 'em?"

Elias nodded,"Older one is Riley Abel, younger one's name is Ellie Williams. Age 16 and 14. They're best friends. One soldier, now dead, says they used to come by his post at a mall. We're sending you there to check it out."

Brad understood, but he still looked confused. If one of them was missing, how was he supposed to find them both? It's not like he knew the exact location of every person in Boston.

Merrick noticed his confusion and smiled,"Don't you worry kid, this will be easy." But Brad still didn't look convinced.

Elias grabbed the file from the table and placed all the papers back inside before handing it to Brad,"Here, look this over today. You will be sent to the mall tomorrow, so you got time to prepare. Head to the armory and get your gear at 1930 hours. Good luck."

Brad took the file, nodded to both Merrick and Elias, and walked back to his room, wondering if this was going to be easy.

* * *

><p>The rain was beating on the roof Brad stood on. The entrance to the mall he was investigating was just a few feet away from where he stood. He lowered the rifle, an IA-2 Marksman Rifle, down when he saw it. He looked down into the hole, checking for Infected. Finding none, he switched on his radio to contact Merrick, who was in charge of his mission.<p>

"Merrick, come in" he waited for his response but nothing came through,"Merrick, you copy?"

"_Yeah, kid. I copy. Sorry about that."__  
><em>

"No problem. I made it to the entrance of the mall, nobody here."

"_Okay. Head inside and see if you can find anyone. If you find the H.V.I, bring them to the RV point at the capitol building. A Ghost team will be waiting there."_

"Copy that" he then turned is radio off and took his pack off from his back. He pulled out his mask that he had received.

He took a moment to gave at it, at the white marks that were painted on it. His whole life he had wanted to join up with the Ghosts and earn a mask like this. He wanted to fight the Fireflies and bring back the world before the infection. Now that privilege was his, and he couldn't be any more proud.

But in the back of his mind he thought of how he had let his parents down. He tried to shake it off and forget about, but the thought just kept on springing back into his head.

It didn't matter anymore. His parents had abandoned him, and he was a Ghost now. That's how it was now.

He eventually just grabbed his mask and pulled it over his head, covering his face so you could only see his eyes.

"Lets do this." was all he said before jumping into the entrance of the mall.


	4. Investigation

**No authors note.**

* * *

><p>The mall was, just like any other place, in ruins. Shrubbery covered most of the walls, and grass was starting to sprout up through the floor. Luckily for Brad, no spores were there, so he there was no need for his gas mask.<p>

Though there was not a single sign of people, he held his gun at ready. The flashlight he had strapped to the side was shining on the walls wherever he looked.

He walked down a set of escalators not far from the entrance, checking his surroundings. He kept walking after that, eyeing a sign that displayed a orange and green water gun. He had heard of all those things that kids had before the outbreak, it all sounded kind of stupid to him. He wondered why people would ever waste their time on things like those, but never paid much attention to it.

It was after that he saw the tent, the FDRA logo on top. Brad walked up to it, finding the entrance wide open. He looked inside, piles of random things were all over the place, and there was even a half empty wine bottle in a bin.

"This has to be from that dead soldier," he stood up and turned his radio on, "Merrick, come in," nothing but static came through, "Merrick, are you there?" The same static came through.

Brad turned it off, "Damn signal is blocked off."

He exited the tent, only to have a surprise for him. The lights inside the mall suddenly came on, bathing the place in light. Brad jumped in surprise; he wasn't expecting anything to happen. But at that point, he knew. Someone was in the mall. It could be the girls; or some soldiers. Whoever it was though, he had to find them.

Brad just kept moving, searching any areas where there could be sings of the people that were there. He stopped inside of a Halloween store to check his gear and ammo. Though he knew he had everything and he hadn't fired a single round, he checked anyway. After that, he continued searching.

He eventually came across the area where the power had been turned on. He knew that the military had flipped of the areas outside of the quarantine zone, so the breaker should be off. Whoever had turned back on must have known that. He didn't pay much attention to it before leaving walking out of that section of the mall.

He passed a whole bunch of different things in the mall. A carousel, a photo booth, more stores, Brad was starting to feel jealous of the people that lived before the outbreak. But, then his thoughts returned to the present.

As soon as he entered the arcade, music burst through the speakers of the entire mall. Brad once again jumped in surprise.

"What the fuck? What the hell is going here?" was all he said. Then he started running. He ran because he needed to find who was there, and fast.

He eventually made it into a room where the sound was coming from. That's where he heard the voices. They were laughing. He also saw two backpacks that had to belong to the people there.

He moved quietly, sticking to the shadows and staying low. He hid behind a shelf and looked at where the voices were.

There, standing on a display case, were the two girls that Merrick and Elias had sent him to find. All this time, they were the ones that had done all that stuff in the mall. But he was still surprised.

"Holy shit. It's actually them." Was all he said.

Then he heard the footsteps, swift and fast. Brad didn't have to think about what they were.

"Oh no." he said.

Infected

Two runners were coming straight towards him. He turned, preparing to fire.

The gunshot rocked around the mall, silencing everything and everyone in the area.


End file.
